Chapter 29 – Snowstorm
Tyrian
It was like he lost a hand, the agony of which that burned through his long armoured tail was so severe that he was essentially foaming at the mouth. Mercury noticed that Tyrian kept turning, as if he was going to go back for Jaune, so he kept pulling the Maniac away from Jvaani. "Enough, Tyrian!" Mercury yelled, but Tyrian slammed him up against one of the trees as the snow blew past them, the blizzard was here and was bitingly cold.
Mercury froze as Tyrian slammed his blades against his throat, if it were not for his weakly regenerating aura that would have killed him. The blades choked him as he held him there, Tyrian's eyes were still glowing a bright purple. "You dare… stand between me… and our Queen's desires?" He snarled viciously. "I have never failed her! NEVER!"
"So what?" Emerald questioned. She herself knew how Salem never brokered failure, but she did not want Tyrian to murder her friend. Mercury was the only friend she had left, sure Hazel was nice enough to the two of them when they were there… but Cinder was the only person they felt like they could trust. Tyrian though? Not at all, Tyrian Callows was a wildcard through and through.
"So what?" Tyrian repeated her question with a pained scoff.
"Would you rather die? Never be able to serve her victoriously ever again?" She asked him with her arms crossed, Thief's Respite holstered onto her belt. "She won't kill you for this, you're one of her Children." She assured, and Tyrian giggled maniacally as he approached her. He towered above Emerald as he stood there, his shadow cast over her smaller frame, but she stared right back at him. Admittedly she was terrified of his madman, but she also knew he would never kill an ally… unless Salem commanded it.
"Well aren't you precious?" He asked her. "You think our Queen will just brush this off? You think I am afraid of her judgement? Of course… but it is not I who will be hurt for this… you were the one that dragged me away." Tyrian reminded, and that made her feel sick… as if Tyrian would protect her. Hazel would, Cinder would… but not Tyrian Callows, and definitely not Arthur Watts.
Watts served only one thing – and that was Knowledge, not Salem, not the cause – but his pursuit for knowledge at all costs.
Emerald was afraid… she saw the madness in his eyes, a tortured child who became a monster thanks to the whispers of Salem. Mercury leant against the tree and he aimed Ash and Blood at him, loading a fresh mag into the weapon, ready to fire. "Leave… her alone." He winced, still in pain from when Pyrrha lifted him up by using the iron in his blood cells. Tyrian turned and stared at him, it was as if he could not feel the pain in his tail anymore, but he was still bleeding out.
Tyrian grunted and he fell to one knee, he punched the soil that the snow slowly began to claim. He looked up at Mercury and he kept trying to get up, and Emerald ignited the blade of Thief's Respite. "We need to cauterise the wound." Emerald told Tyrian as he stared at Mercury with gritted teeth. His eyes widened with fear and he turned.
"No! No fire!" He yelled, legitimate fear in his voice.
"You're bleeding out, and if we don't close it up it will be infected. It will just take a second." Emerald explained as she walked towards his tail. He swung his tail round with a bone chilling scream, slamming his tail across Emerald's cheek, so hard it nearly knocked her unconscious.
"NO FIRE!" He yelled, seeing flashes of his childhood… the stench of burning flesh, his mother howling in agony in their burning home. The laughs of Faunus who burned his people… like dogs. He was shaking but not from the cold… it was fear and rage… a hate that they saw before.
"You're… gonna die if we don't close that wound, Tyrian." Mercury warned, but as the Trio stood there, they all heard the sound of their Gyrfalcon approaching. The four huge thrusters blasted the water from the trees that surrounded them, and it slowly descended into the woodland of Northern Anima. The landing gear folded out and so did the rear door, where Watts was stood with his hands behind his back as always.
"I see your mission did not go as planned, Tyrian." Watts greeted as he emerged from the Gyrfalcon, looking at his tail and immediately noticing the Barb had been cut off. "What the bloody hell happened to your old one?"
"The Schnee… Heiress." He snarled, and Arthur's eyes widened when he heard that surname.
"Schnee… well, well… I guess Weiss Schnee continues to defy her father. I admire that, at least she does not let him steal her future from her." He said with a snarl, before turning back to the three of them. "Come on, get in. I'll patch up your tail and work on a Cybernetic Replacement for it." Watts assured as they walked into the vehicle. It was clearly Black Gallows property, or at least that was where it originated, but from the Salem's Eye symbol that was tattooed on it, this one clearly belonged to Watts.
Tyrian sat down in the chair, whilst Watts activated some of the Grave Dust that he had on hand. "Whoa, what are you doing? You've shown us what that stuff can do to people…" Mercury groaned as he sat down, all he needed was some rest so then his bruises could heal.
"When modified, but deep down this is still designed for medical purposes. You see this is a far less painful procedure that cauterising the wound, and I know our Scorpion Boy here does not overly… approve of the flames." He said as he looked at Tyrian who wrung his hands together. Emerald furrowed her brow as she watched Tyrian ponder over his past, about what caused him to have such a strong reaction against fire.
"What's it doing?" Mercury asked as he watched the grave dust travel down to the stump that Tyrian had rested on his table. Tyrian grunted and he punched the table, it still hurt but it was nowhere near as bad as burns. The dust entered the flesh, and it hardened like it does when forming blades, covering up the bleed and closing the wound completely.
"Think of it as a less painful Cauterisation." Watts explained. "But modify it? It can rip a body apart, of simply crumble it into ashes…"
It was called Grave Dust for a reason.
Tyrian panted and he looked at Arthur. "Thank you, Doctor." He said to him, and Watts patted his shoulder. Just from how the two of them spoke, it was very clear to both of Mercury and Emerald that these two had some history. They knew they were first two to join Salem… but Tyrian was so much younger than Arthur was. Their friendship was very surprising, because they actually trusted each other.
"So, what now? Jaune Arc got away, there were more with him than we expected. Sienna Khan and that Chameleon chick were with them." Mercury asked as he shrugged his shoulders.
"Ilia Amitola. I read Sienna's file, she is not important to Salem. If she gets in our way she dies, simple as that. Same goes for Sienna now, we cannot risk the White Fang from being strong. The Feral Ones cannot have any opposition in the world to come." Watts explained as he walked around the Gyrfalcon. He approached the cockpit and prepared it for take-off. "And besides, I have received new orders. Now that Icarus is onboard with the plan, we are not going to trail Jaune Arc. Salem wants us to prepare – I am heading for Atlas. Tyrian you will accompany me, I have a plan. The two of you will join Icarus in your search for the Relics of Knowledge and Creation." Watts explained as he walked to his coat that was hung up, putting it on.
"Wait, why is Jaune not a concern? We nearly got ourselves killed trying to capture him, I thought he was priority one?" Emerald question.
"He was, but he can wait." Watts assured, Emerald rolled her eyes.
"And why is that?" Emerald asked.
"Do you not trust our divine saviour?" Tyrian snarled viciously.
"After she had us tortured by that… thing… that took us? No not really, if I am gonna be risking my life for her, then I would like to know why." Emerald stated, Mercury was nervous by how Emerald had the courage to question Salem's two most loyal subjects like that. But then again, Watts was not one to bullshit.
"Well, since you put it that way. The reason why Jaune Arc is not a target for now, is because Jackdaw's plan is going as well as we hoped. Trying to nab Jaune Arc along the way was uncertain, admittedly, but we gave it our best shot. Salem never really would blame you if you failed to bring him, since we already have a back-up." Watts explained.
"And that back up is?" Emerald inquired.
"It is that the Rogues are heading head-first into a slaughter. When they get to Lake Matsu as our informant assures us will happen – the Black Gallows will attack and slaughter them all. Far away from any civilian areas, can easily be mistaken for either the Vasillias Cartel wiping them out or the Grimm that lurk in there. Easy cover story, no-one the wiser." Watts explained. "When that happens? Well we will all ambush Jaune Arc, kill his friends and the Nikos Girl at once and take him to Salem."
"And what if that doesn't work?" Emerald asked.
"Have some faith." Tyrian commanded.
"You just saw how well they can fight, Ruby and the others are no worse. What if Ruby and her buddies survive Lake Matsu?" Emerald asked, but Watts had even planned on that as well.
"Then we let Jackdaw continue on his mission. End of the day the deal was to follow his trail just as they are. There is a reason he is taking the path he has done – lots of wilderness, and places where people can simply… disappear." Watts explained with a smirk. "One way or another, those brats will be dead, and Killian's plan with the Vytal Consensus will work without a hitch. If we can do this without bloodshed then hooray! But you all know where I stand on this… Killian is preaching to the choir… there will always be those who stand against him. There is always conflict." Watts explained as he looked out the window.
He turned to them. "Any further questions?" Watts asked the two of them. Emerald and Mercury looked at each other and they sighed.
"No." They both agreed.
"Good… because I am going to take the two of you to Icarus, and then Tyrian and I are headed to Atlas." He told them.
"What about Hazel and Adam?" Mercury asked curiously.
"Headed to Atlas as well. The Dust Mines harbour countless Faunus, Faunus who would happily rise up against Jacques Schnee. Which will help with the next part of the plan." Watts assured.
"And that is?" Emerald asked, but Watts grinned and he tapped his nose.
"Spoilers." He told her.
The two of them sat down and strapped in as Watts started up the Gyrfalcon, and the huge Four Winged Bullhead took off, and it flew away from Jvaani… and the mystery of what happened there.
Pyrrha
The storm obscured the retreat of the Gyrfalcon, they had no idea how close the Children of Salem truly were to their location.
The blizzard was picking up in ferocity. Her nose was running, her skin numb from the cold and the ends of her red hair were growing frost. Pyrrha hated this, to say the least.
"Urgh. It barely ever snows where I come from." Pyrrha swiped her wrist under nose, grimacing at the slime. "Eww." Looking behind at the almost opaque white storm, she could see the falling snow fill their deep boot prints. Sniffling, she jumped when Jaune touched her shoulder, a soft smile on his cold reddened face.
"We'll find some shelter soon. Promise."
"You made good on that promise, Mr Arc." Winter winced from the pain in her side, still bleeding from the wound she suffered – they managed to make a bandage from some materials that they had, but they needed to make something stronger. Winter was still able to walk on her own though, holding her palm up against the horizontal snowfall. She pointed ahead, at the silhouette of a house in the distance. "We can take shelter there!"
"And lose those three! They could still be nearby!" Blake yelled over the howling winds, pointing at their disappearing tracks. "This storm's covering our trails!"
Ilia thumped into a stone wall. "Oof!" She held her gut with one hand, rubbing her knee with the other.
"Ow. And it's hiding the house." Blake winced for her, rubbing her back affectionately.
Winter stared down at the bouncing metal gate before them, clattering on the latch. Seemingly out of nowhere, the border walls to the farmhouse sprung into view - and knees - through the whiteout. Weiss stepped up beside her sister, rubbing her upper arms. Flakes of snow littered her blanc hair.
"What's wrong, Winter?"
Winter looked over her shoulder at the others. Sienna was hugging her upper arms to stay warm, Pyrrha and Jaune were damn near huddled together, and Blake was rubbing Ilia's shoulders to keep at a survivable temperature.
"We have no choice but to stay. Push on when the storm's passed. And when those hunters have lost us." She looked to the loud clattering gate, unlatching it. "And make this place silent. Anything flapping around must be tethered or ripped down. Silence in the blindness, or they'll find us."
"Understood." Weiss nodded, nodding to the others. "We're staying. Wait for this all to pass."
"Good call. I made sure we circled back round when we left Jvaani, so they shouldn't double back. We're way off from the roads." Jaune's teeth chattered. Winter smiled.
"Expertly led, Mr Arc. I see that passing with flying colours was no fluke." Winter congratulated. Jaune gave a trembling thumbs up, before ushering everyone through the gateway. When they were through, Ilia and Blake lifted the heavy gate off of it's hinges and lay it down in the snow covered hay bales. Once through, Weiss clicked the revolving chamber of Myrtenaster round, swiping the air and forming a waist high wall of ice over the entrance.
"Couldn't have just frozen the gate?" Ilia asked with a smug smile, Blake giggling. Weiss rolled her eyes.
"Well... yes, I suppose. I hadn't thought about that. Besides, it could thaw!"
Blake looked up at the unending storm rolling over them, painting the side of her head white with snow. Weiss rolled her eyes.
"Whatever, g-go inside!" Weiss grumbled as Blake and Ilia chuckled, tugging the Schnee with them.
They walked past the frost covered sign of the settlement, they did not even notice it.
Brunswick Farms…
Meanwhile, Jaune and Pyrrha walked through the deceptive whiteout. No depth perception, no way to know if-
"Ah!" Pyrrha groaned, rubbing her hip. "Ouch!" She frowned, staring down at the cobble stone well in the centre of the farmyard. Jaune, cringing for her, walked over and unwrapped his tattered sash from around his waist, gently looping it around Pyrrha's neck as a makeshift scarf. She smiled at him as he wound it lovingly, even as the winds tried to undo his gentle loops.
"There." He smiled, teeth chattering. Pyrrha hummed.
"We should get inside. This isn't letting up." She rubbed her shoulders. Sienna and Winter were busy though, gently taking the other gates off and laying them in the snow or against the walls, using ice dust to freeze the gateways shut. Ilia looked up at the house and the flapping sign jutting from the fascia. With a frown she reeled her whip back and slashed it up, coiling around the wooden "Inn" sign. She tugged but no give in the strong metal brackets.
"Having trouble?" Blake asked, spinning Gambol shroud by it's ribbon. Ilia groaned as she tugged.
"It's maybe a bit too loud. Should take it down, just in case."
"Agreed." Blake threw Gambol Shroud up, but the wind blew the pistol the opposite way, landing in the thick snow. Blake stared at Ilia and cringed. "Not my best throw."
"Worst throw ever. Of all time."
"Eh, seen worse." Blake shrugged, throwing Gambol up again - successfully. The two tugged on their weapons and the sign snapped, crashing down into the soft snow, soundlessly.
"No shutters on the windows." Sienna noted to Winter. "This place isn't used to these sort of storms." She then tripped, looking down at the snow. Swiping the thick snow aside, she yelped at the rotten and frozen cattle.
"What happened here?" Weiss asked. "There's dead cattle everywhere. And pigs were left in their pens. Dead." She spoke glumly. Pyrrha trotted over.
"There's other houses on this estate. There's a converted Barn by the trees over there." she thumbed over her shoulder. Winter nodded, looking at her palm. Hopefully this place had some good medical supplies they could use to patch up her injury.
"Big estate. Any noisy items?"
Jaune shook his head. "No. No shutters, barn door is still sealed. I think we got everything."
"Then we should get inside. Or, more importantly..." Sienna drew her Cerberus Whip. "Check no ones home." They all nodded in agreement, taking their weapons off their backs. Pyrrha tried to transform Milo into spear form but the gears had frozen together.
Xiphos form it is then.
Sienna trotted up the porch steps, boards creaking beneath her weight, staring at the chipped blue paint on the door. Flanked by Weiss and Blake, she looked to her sister and Faunus.
"Be ready. If anyone is in here, they won't appreciate intruders, and farmers are renowned for holding firearm licenses."
Jaune
The White Fang High Leader kicked the front door in with a loud bang, splitting the soft wood around the lock. The door swung in and clattered against the wall, wind blew snow across the darkened floorboards. Weapons drawn, the team filed in, Pyrrha flanking Sienna, Jaune's sword held aloft his head behind Ilia. Blake and Weiss checkmated their way into the hall, pistol and rapier raised. Winter filed in last of all, shutting the door behind as hard as she could against the elements. With no lock anymore, and wind howling through the split door, the door would blow open if she released it.
"Had to kick it, huh?"
"Had to get in." Sienna shrugged, lowering her Cerberus Whip. "The place is deserted."
"And cold." Weiss added, swiping some dust off the mantle piece. "This place hasn't had people in it for a while."
Jaune and Pyrrha found a wardrobe, pushing it from the living room over to the front door, where Sienna helped barricade it shut. Panting, Arkos looked at the tigress, who chuckled. She thumbed the oak wardrobe.
"Eh, stops them getting in if they do find us, huh?" She grinned. Jaune let out a breathy chuckle, Pyrrha patting his back. Ilia however was staring at a picture on the wall, by the staircase. She traced her gloved finger over the family photo.
"Brunswick Farms."
"What's that?" Blake asked, standing beside her. Ilia shrugged.
"Maybe, the people who lived here before? Question on my mind though... is how long ago?" She looked at the smiling people in the frame, while Winter went around using her fire dust to illuminate a few cold candles. She frowned at the candles. They weren't new, they were half burnt, wax that hadn't melted in years starting to trickle once more.
"Weiss." She said, curtly. Her sister trotted over.
"Yes, sister?"
"Head upstairs. And take Pyrrha with you. Check the rooms, people could still be here. Be careful." She touched her sister's arm, Weiss smiling. Weiss was worried for her sister, that would needed some proper work, a torn sock and some tape was not the best bandage. Hopefully there was a First Aid Kit around here somewhere.
But Winter was tough, and a little cut was not about to bring her down.
"Of course. Pyrrha, come with me!"
"Coming!"
Winter frowned as she moved through the house, to the pantry, to the kitchen. The house was so dark. But the world outside was so bright and white.
"They boarded it up, from the inside." Jaune said, startling Winter. He knocked against the wooden blanks over the windows. "No shutters outside, but boarded inside?"
"Maybe the storm was freak, forecast gave them time to prepare?"
"Don't you normally board from outside?" Jaune asked, moving around the kitchen island. He lifted sheathed Crocea and ran his hand up it, igniting the fire dust in a long pillar of bright amber light. Crackling flames were all that could be heard as he lit the dark, much to Winter's appreciation.
"That upgrade seems to have been worth the effort." She commented, lifting a sheet off the floor with her long blade. Jaune chuckled.
"Yeah. Eh, mentioned to Weiss a while back how cool the Schnee stuff was. She surprised me with that sheath enhancement that Dustmas."
"She's very fond of you. All of you." Winter said, smiling. "I believe you had a romantic feeling for her long ago?"
Jaune chuckled nasally. "W-Well, yeah, but. I don't anymore. I umm... " He lowered his sword. "I was a dumb kid, you know? I used to think pick up lines work and being a ladies man was cool."
"And now?"
He smiled, thinking on Pyrrha. "I'm a one lady type man, now."
"Good answer." Winter smirked, before they heard Weiss' blood curdling scream from upstairs. They all rushed up the creaking steps until finding her, hyperventilating in the doorway to a bedroom, Pyrrha comforting her. Winter looked inside, raising a brow at the frozen frostbitten bodies in the bed.
Sometime had passed, spent fortifying the house through the harsh weather. The house creaked and wind howled through small holes and cracks.
The warmth was up, with the fireplace lit and crackling in the front room. The dark lounge was softly flickering warm colours, those popping logs crackling within the flames.
Weiss was trembling, hugging her knees and staring at the fire, gasping when Blake gently draped a blanket over her shoulders. "Oh. Thank you." She hoarsely spoke. Blake squeezed her shoulder, before sitting on the couch besides Ilia and Sienna.
None of them noticed the eyes that were watching them in the dark corners of the house, not once.
"Can I sit on there?" Weiss asked from her blanket burrito. Sienna scoffed, holding her arms out.
"We called shotgun on the Faunus fun couch." Ilia and Blake giggling. Weiss whined.
"Hey! That's discriminatory!"
"I kid, I kid." Sienna shuffled, patting the spot between herself and Ilia. Weiss smiled, getting up and sitting between, sighing contently at the shared warmth. Pyrrha and Jaune were in the kitchen, Jaune's head buried deep in a cupboard. He whistled and pulled out a can of coffee, rattling it.
"Should get a couple of cups out of this, huh?" He smiled, but Pyrrha was distant, staring at the table top mindlessly. He bit his lip, before reaching back in the cupboard. "Oooh! Check this!" He pulled out the tall box, chuckling. "Pumpkin Pete's! Man, this is old, it's got your Sanctum graduate picture on it... still."
Pyrrha was still staring at the table. Jaune set the box down with a sigh. "Pyr. Pyr. Pyrrha!" He clapped, startling her.
"Buh! Buh?" She tilted her head. He smiled softly.
"Where are you?"
"Oh um... just..." She yawned into her palm tiredly. "Just tired." Jaune nodded, pacing over to her, softly gripping the edges of the blanket wrapped around her. Then he gently pressed a kiss to her forehead, Pyrrha sighing contently.
"Help me find a kettle?" He asked, Pyrrha chuckling.
"I thought you were going to say something more... romantic?"
"What's more romantic than a working kettle?" He grinned, giving her a chaste kiss on the lips. "C'mon."
The two went about checking the cupboards, turning over boxes until Pyrrha gasped. "Found it!" She pulled the metal kettle from the corner, holding it up like a lantern. Jaune grinned, fist pumping.
"Yes! Hot coffee's gonna happen guys!"
"Hot coffee!" The others cheered from the other room, Pyrrha giggling as Jaune filled the kettle.
"I can't stop thinking about Vacuo… well and… Jvaani…"
"A lot has happened recently." Pyrrha sighed as she stood with him.
"It's funny, you'd think it would be Jvaani that would be freshest… but… I don't know why but I just can't stop thinking about Vacuo." He sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose.
Jaune set the kettle on the cooker, managing to light the flame with a sprinkle of his fire dust. Patting his pants clear, he looked at her with solemn eyes.
"Me too." He huffed, hands on his hips. They stared at each other across the table. "I mean... All this? Everything that's happened just gets more and more confusing. They run from us. Okay, they thought the Gallows were coming, I get that. And I get the reason they wanna do all this..."
"Why couldn't we have talked about it more?" Pyrrha pulled up a chair, sitting and wrapping the blanket tighter. "If we'd have had a few more days of talking, I think we could have reached an agreement." She frowned. "And now they're making me reconsider my choice."
"Mmm." Jaune worried his lip. "I just... They're thinking with their hearts, you know? And... I guess we thought about the future. So many conflicting things, makes me think the damn Consensus was written to divide us."
"I wouldn't be surprised." Pyrrha huffed. "This is Killian we're talking about." Jaune looked at her, cracking the cold aches out of his knuckles.
"Thanks, by the way."
"What for?" She looked up. He shrugged.
"You have always had my back. A-And I know that it just so happens you felt the same as me, you have your own opinions and you wouldn't just side with me cos we're a couple but... Yeah. Thanks. To have you be in my corner means the world." He smiled at her lovingly. "Dunno what I'd do if my whole team abandoned me."
Pyrrha got up, pacing around the table. "I must admit, I am angry, and upset. Ren and Nora leaving and acting as they have, it's... shaken me."
"They're very family fuelled, you know? If we said that the man who killed out parents was out there, and we had the ability to go after him? You know they'd be at our backs all the way."
"I know. I just wish they would've thought about the fallout of this more, all of them!" She frowned. "And I am especially angry with Qrow. He's fed into all this, his lust to kill Jackdaw, he saying whatever he has to get Ruby and Yang to stay with them."
"Mmm." Jaune sighed, rubbing his jaw. "And the manor."
"The manor." Pyrrha breathed, shuddering as if cold hands grabbed at her from the darkness. "Finding those burnt out ruins. The bodies? All this in the wake of them being there? What have they gotten involved in?"
"I dunno. And if we know them half as well as I think - no, hope we do. Well, hopefully they're just as shocked. Gods, being two steps behind all the time, finding what's left of where they've been, it's really starting to grate on me." Jaune scoffed.
"Me too." she huffed. "I want them to stop this and come home." Pyrrha sighed.
"You and me both." he nodded, holding his arms out. Pyrrha smiled and slotted against his chest, wrapping her blanket around his shoulders. His arms cinched around her waist, hugging her tight. "I love you."
"I love you too." She breathed, kissing his stubbly chin. He buried his nose in her hair, just as the kettle began to whistle. The bony hands reaching for him behind closed eyelids were concerning though. Opening his eyes, he sighed at the shadow of a skeletal tree on the wall, moving in the breeze. He rolled his eyes at himself, shaking his head, feeling silly for reverting to fears he had as a child, even as the skeletal shadow lumbered off down the hall.
The back porch's door opened with a wail of wind and snow, Winter stepping in and slamming the door shut, locking it with a click. Even with her wound, she still made sure that she was the one doing the rounds.
And they did try to convince her… but Winter Schnee… is a hard woman to persuade.
Weiss immediately looked at her wound, the blood was still seeping through the sock of Jaune's. They needed to tend to it. Pyrrha lifted her head from Jaune's chest, staring at her. Winter shuddered, patting the snow off of her sleeves.
The other's soon appeared in the doorway. "And?"
"It's the same in every house." She said, dusting herself off. "Everyone dead in their beds. No sign of struggle." Everyone took in her words in there own way. Weiss tugged at her blanket, Sienna raised a brow, Ilia held a hand over her mouth, while Blake's ears drooped.
"How the hell is that possible? They just… went to sleep and never woke up?" Sienna questioned.
"It's – argh – what it looks like." She sighed.
Jaune and Pyrrha shared a stare, before separating their hug. Winter sighed, stepping by them to be nearer the fireplace, warming up her hands.
"Anyway. It doesn't change anything." Winter sighed. "This place will do as cover till the storm passes. Then we can be on our way." She yawned tiredly. "You should all look at getting some sleep."
"But I just made coffee." Jaune shrugged, Pyrrha rolling her eyes fondly. Winter paused, looking over her shoulder.
"Coffee works." She shrugged.
Weiss giggled into her palm, matching Pyrrha's polite chuckle. Sienna rolled her eyes with a soft smirk while Ilia
Blake
Winter was being tended to by Weiss – finally – they managed to find an old First Aid kit. The strangest thing about this place was the date of all the things here. Everything seemed so old, of course people out here wouldn't have the newest stuff but… the bodies looked like they had been here for at the very most a few weeks. So it is not like this happened a few years back… no… something was off about this place. Blake could sense it as she looked around.
"Hey, Blake." Ilia said, she turned and saw her old friend walk over to her.
"Ilia, what's up?" She asked her.
"I was gonna go scout the Farm, make sure nothing is out there. Wanna help out? Was gonna check out that Barn, see if anything interesting is there." Ilia shrugged her shoulders with a bright smile. Her smile always made Blake smile back, so she nodded her head. They walked out into the snowy storm and they walked around. Blake shielded her eyes from the snow as it flew in, she almost saw something… like a person out there. But then it was gone.
She didn't even remember the thing that was following them.
"This isn't right. I know that Blizzards are common in Northern Anima… but this one came out of nowhere." Ilia explained as she held her arms up to block the snow.
"I know what you mean, normally there's a telling sign in the air. That one just appeared." Blake said as they approached the abandoned Barn, which was connected to another house. They pushed it open and closed it behind them. Luckily for them the Guest Cabin was connected through a door that was open. It swung back and forth ever so gently, and Ilia immediately started to look around. Blake was silent as she walked with her, and Ilia looked at the poorly maintained Tractor left behind by these people.
"Something tells me that's not street legal." Ilia chuckled, before she turned and saw that Blake found something. Blake gasped, covering her mouth with a pair of widened eyes. "Oh gods…"
It was a dog… just… dead. A pet dog that was left there, starved to death. Just like the rest of the people here, not one of them had any claw marks of wounds. They just died… most likely starved to death. "What the hell happened here?"
"Famine? I mean storms like these can cause trouble." Ilia shrugged.
"I'd agree… if it weren't for the dead cattle, dead horses and dead crops. They had enough going here for the rest of the year, especially for the Winter." Blake explained as she looked at the dog's collar. It stunk of rot, which meant the dog died before the people did.
"I don't like this." Ilia said.
"Me neither." Blake agreed, they both walked into the attached Guest Cabin and they found what was inside. It was exactly like Jvaani here as well, the tables were just left there. As if the people just up and left, except there was a body in the rocking chair. Their skin had blackened from decomposition, as Ilia looked around she picked up a note.
"Hey, Blake?" Ilia said, Blake turned and saw what she was holding. "Check it out."
"What is it?" Blake inquired.
"Some kind of goodbye note."
I'm sorry…
We were fools to follow him out here. What were we thinking? We all heard the reports of what happened to Kuroyuri and Oniyuri, towns that try and survive without the aid of the Mistraalian Council are doomed to be destroyed by the Grimm. But oh no, Bartleby is so certain that he can fix this mess.
I've never seen a debt this bad before, I told him not to mess with the Vasillias Cartel. They are bad news, always have been. Once you make a deal with them for money, they are not about to forget it.
We should leave… but… the children… I cannot leave them to those savages. Let them have Bartleby, he made his bed now he should lie in it.
But I do not want my family to die too…
… this place… the stress… I'm so tired.
"Gods… trouble in paradise." Ilia said as she set the note back down on the table where she found it. The old man was very clearly the person who wrote this. Blake walked over to his body and she touched his skin, it was icy cold… but unnaturally so. Like he had been drained… that was the feeling that filled this place.
Blake walked and she entered one of the bedrooms, she gasped and her eyes widened. She immediately closed the door from what she saw. Ilia turned and looked at her. "What is it?" She asked.
I… why can't I remember?
I remember… the beds… and the… what else was in there?
"It was a cat…" She lied, an Ilia knew it.
"It's the kids… isn't it?" Ilia asked, and she could see it in her sad eyes. Ilia just walked past her and she continued to search. Blake opened the door, and there they were. But from how her heart nearly stopped… something else was in there. She knew it in her bones… but she could not remember it for the life of her.
She closed the door behind her, just avoiding the cold black hand that reached out for her main of black hair.
Sienna
She was exploring the Brunswick House, checking the many books that were left behind. Frost was forming from the blizzard, on the inside of the windows that were covered with wooden planks. Sienna peered through and noticed what also looked like people wandering through the snow, past the dead cattle, but as she blinked they vanished. Sienna narrowed her feline eyes and she stepped back.
"Hey, Sienna?" Weiss greeted.
"Oh!" Sienna jolted with shock, not expecting to see Weiss Schnee stood next to her out of nowhere.
"Oh, I'm so sorry." She apologised.
"No, it's alright… what's up?" Sienna asked her curiously. "How's Winter?"
"She's fine, gave her a proper bandage. Her aura is still down, not sure why. I'm sure it will fix itself soon." Weiss said and Sienna nodded her head as she returned back to the books. Weiss raised a brow as she picked up a Journal. "What are you doing?" She asked.
"Curiosity… it was always my biggest failing." Sienna stated as she looked at the pretty Heiress. She opened the book and walked with her, returning back into the main room where everyone else had brought their blankets down to rest for the night. Jaune and Pyrrha were sharing one together, Pyrrha was laid atop Jaune who was stroking her soft red hair lovingly. Winter was on one of the sofas whilst Ilia had claimed the rocking chair with a smug smile. Blake was getting comfortable with her blanket whilst Sienna found another chair to sit in, turning on one of the lights.
Weiss looked at Sienna as she got comfortable. "What's that book about?" She asked.
"It's a Journal, by the man who owned this place. He wrote everything – his name was Bartleby Brunswick. Seems like he was quite the ambitious fella." Sienna admitted as she shrugged her shoulders, flicking through all the pages. "Always coming up with new schemes to overcome the odds."
"Did they always work?" Jaune asked.
"Not… all of them, as you can see. He became desperate, losing Huntsmen he hired from Haven constantly from the Grimm. But… the Vasillias Cartel were the ones he was scared of." She explained, Winter looked at her when she heard the surname. Eryka told her a lot about her mother, and the Vasillias Cartel.
Lavinia is a very dangerous woman.
"What did he do?" She asked.
"Bartleby was like most of the people who left Mistral – he was tired of how the Council were running things. So he wanted to try it out there on his own. It worked for a while, he had good land, made plenty of money and kept his people fed…"
"Until?" Ilia asked as she snuggled into her blanket.
"Until he needed more money. Like I said, the Huntsmen and Huntresses he hired did what they could – but eventually a new Grimm would pop up. Sometimes they just vanished without a trace." Sienna explained, that was something that reminded Jaune of Jvaani. That ghost town was one of the most unnerving things they had ever seen, due to how people just… literally vanished minutes before they got there. "He needed more money to pay for the Huntsman Fees – so he asked for a loan from none other than Lavinia Vasillias."
"Oh gods…" Winter gasped. They all were filled in on the things they did to the Vacuo Mafia, and the Spiders.
"Still nothing on what happened here though. This does not strike me as a Cartel act… the place would have been destroyed and looted otherwise." Sienna pointed out and Jaune nodded his head.
"Not the first we've seen of this, is it?" He stated, and Sienna nodded.
"Jvaani…"
"Yeah… that place gave me the creeps." Weiss shuddered as she wrapped herself in her little burrito of softness.
Jaune could not stop thinking about it now, about the people that have been hunting him. "First the Praetorian Knight four years ago, then that guy – Hazel – and now this Tyrian dude with Emerald and Mercury. All of them keep trying to capture me… for this… Salem person." Jaune said as he scratched his head. He felt Pyrrha's hand grip his ever so gently.
"They won't." Pyrrha promised.
"Salem… she's powerful and has a lot of followers. What the hell could a guy like me possibly mean to them?" And that was a question none of them could answer. And it was not even in an insulting way, because he had a point. His semblance was the ability to boost someone's aura, yes – but other than that there was not much else to say about Jaune. He came from a family of warriors, he fell in love with a Nikos – an Ancient Family name – and he has an old sword from the Great War.
Other than that? Not much to say.
"So many questions…" Blake sighed.
"Seems to be the theme, huh?" Jaune chuckled as he laid down, kissing Pyrrha affectionately.
They all decided to get some rest, and Sienna was the last to fall asleep. But as they drifted, the dark shadows loomed over them. Silently walking around them.
Staring at them…
They were not alone here.
Author Note - Brunswick Farms... nothing good comes from that place.
Shout out to David for helping out with this chapter, as you can imagine most of the Arkos stuff was him XD. It is his speciality though, Romance is not my forte.
This was a cool chapter to write, unique characters in places I haven't written before. It's what I love about these teams. The different conversations and interactions between characters as they explore the world. And what is this thing that is wiping their memories the moment they don't see it (and no, not the Silence from Doctor Who XD). I guess we will have to find out.
And that start at the stuff with Tyrian was cool to write. I am excited to write these new Children of Salem, for those who read Knights of Grimm, they are all very different to how they are in that. And I love it, getting to write new versions of them. Especially Watts.
I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Please review, follow and favourite!
Stay tuned for the next chapter!
- Matt